Republican Rep. Allen Peake is supplying low-THC cannabis oils to Georgia patients due to the state's limited laws that allow them to possess the products but offer no way for them to cultivate, import, or purchase them, the Associated Press reports. Peake, a major advocate for Georgia's medical marijuana law, has helped families move to Colorado in the past so they would have legal access to medical marijuana treatments.

“We’re going to do whatever it takes to be able to help get product to these families, these citizens who have debilitating illnesses,” Peake said in the report. He added that he doesn’t know , and doesn’t ask, who delivers the boxes of cannabis oil to his Macon office.

He said that he makes a donation to a medical cannabis research foundation in Colorado each time a box is delivered, and that the donations total about $100,000 per year. Peake is allowed to legally possess the oil because he has obtained a medical marijuana card from the Georgia Department of Public Health, despite the fact that he is not considered a qualified patient under the state’s rules.

In Georgia, about 1,300 patients are enrolled in the state program and, aside from Peake, their only option to obtain the oil is online, which is against federal law.

Patients in Alabama will have greater access to medical cannabis oil after Governor Robert Bentley on Wednesday signed HB 61, also know as Leni's Law, as passed by the Alabama Legislature.

Gov. Bentley's signature decriminalizes possession of medical marijuana CBD oil with THC content of up to 3 percent. The bill is named for a four-year-old girl whose family moved to Oregon to legally access cannabidiol cannabis oil to treat her severe epilepsy, and was hailed as a victory by Leni's mother, Amy Young, reports Paul Gattis at Al.com.

"We are incredibly grateful to the state of Alabama for giving families like ours the opportunity to find relief from life altering and debilitating conditions, and hope for a better quality of life," Young told Hemp News Wednesday afternoon. "Access to medical treatment shouldn't be determined by your zip code."

"I've got this smile glued to my face," said Young, who revealed she'd already received calls from lawmakers in Iowa, South Dakota and Tennessee since the Leni's Law was signed.

Boston sportscasting legend Bob Lobel is one of hundreds of Massachusetts patients who say they've found a safer and more effective substitute for opioid painkillers by using medical marijuana.

Lobel, 71, a longtime television reporter and anchor, has dealt with chronic pain for years, the result of numerous surgeries, reports Chris Villani at the Boston Herald. He's had two knee replacements, two rotator cuff surgeries, four back surgeries and, at separate times, fracture the tops of both femurs.

"That was brutal," Lobel said of the femur breaks. The constant pain which resulted left him taking handfuls of opioid pills.

"My issue was strictly pain," Lobel said. "I didn't want to take anymore OxyContin or oxycodone or Percocet, for a variety of reasons. The biggest thing I was worried about was addiction. But they also made me tired and it was hard to function and I couldn’t go on TV all drugged up.”

Pure curiosity led him to check out a medical marijuana event several months ago in Boston. While there, he met Dr. Uma Dhanabalan of the Uplifting Health and Wellness clinic in Natick, Mass. Dhanabalan is a strong advocate for patients using cannabis when they might otherwise find themselves addicted to opioids.

Prairie Plant Systems Inc. and CanniMed Ltd. have successfully received Section 56 exemptions under the Marihuana for Medical Purposes Regulations (MMPR) governed by Health Canada and as a result have begun manufacturing cannabis oil for patients.

Similar to the seven dry cannabis products currently being offered, CanniMed® oils will be available in three distinct THC-to-CBD ratios, according to the company:

"We are very proud to be among the first licensed producers to receive the go ahead from Health Canada to manufacture CanniMed oils for our patients," said Brent Zettl, president and CEO of Prairie Plant Systems Inc. and CanniMed Ltd. "Patient requests for oils have been significant with as many as 67 per cent responding to an informal survey suggesting they would prefer this delivery method over smoking or vaporizing."

CanniMed® oil will be packaged in 60-milliliter bottles and include an oral syringe for consistent dosing and as a spill prevention.

About CanniMed and Prairie Plant Systems

CanniMed Ltd. was the first producer to be licensed under the Marihuana for Medical Purposes Regulations (MMPR). Their pharmaceutical-grade cannabis is produced under Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) regulations, the criteria used to manufacture all pharmaceuticals in Canada.

Canadian medical marijuana patients can legally use all forms of cannabis, the Canadian Supreme Court unanimously ruled on Thursday.

Medicinal cannabis patients will now be able to legally consume marijuana, not just smoke it, reports the BBC.

Cannabis oil is now legally allowed instead of only dried marijuana flowers, making it easier to infuse food products.

The right at stake was described by the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association as the right to personal autonomy in medical decision-making – no matter what medical science may say about the wisdom of the decision, reports Sean Fine at The Globe and Mail.

The case began back in 2009 when former head baker Owen Smith of the Cannabis Buyers Club of Canada, a British Columbia collective, was charged with trafficking and unlawful possession of marijuana. Smith was caught baking 200 cannabis cookies, reports Trinh Theresa Do at CBC.

A B.C. judge acquitted Smith and gave the Canadian government a year to change laws about marijuana extracts. The case then went to the Supreme Court.

Cowardly much? Idaho Governor Butch Otter this week vetoed a bill that would have legalized cannabis oil to treat children with severe forms of epilepsy.

The bill would have legalized the concentrated oil containing cannabidiol, a non-psychoactive compound found in marijuana, reports KTVB.

It was one of a wave of "CBD-only" bills which have recently been passed by timid lawmakers in conservative states who want to appear to be doing something to "help the children" by passing some sort of medical marijuana bill without taking any actual political risk.

But apparently even that was seen as too far-out by the timid Governor.

The Governor's order claims there were "too many questions and problems" with the bill, and "too few answers and solutions" for him to sign the bill into law.

A more likely answer would be the Governor's political cowardice, since bills almost exactly like this one have passed in numerous other states like Utah and Alabama, which just as backwards, I mean as conservative, as Idaho.

A group of Idaho mothers pushed for passage of the bill, pointing out the oil did not make children high, but instead has numerous medical benefits in helping children with epilepsy have fewer seizures.

G FarmaLabs, a producer/processor of medical and adult use marijuana-based products, on Monday announced the launch of Liquid Gold Extracts NUG RUN Tanks, which contain what the company calls "the purest form of cannabis oil currently available within the medical/adult use marketplaces."

The brand has officially timed the product’s debut in observance of 4/20 to be made available on store shelves of all participating dispensaries carrying G FarmaLabs products.

The company’s NUG RUN oil is produced using a 100 percent blend of indoor marijuana flowers, thus breaking the status quo of traditional oil extraction processes. While most oils are created using the extracted byproducts of cannabis plants, NUG RUN uses the richest part of the plant, which carries the greatest amount of trichomes and terpenes. These are released into the oil during refinement and purification, resulting in much higher potency and longer lasting effect.

“We’re super excited about the launch of NUG RUN as a brand new flagship offering for our Liquid Gold Extracts line,” said Ata Gonzalez, CEO, G FarmaLabs Limited. "When we began development on the product, we were determined to set the bar higher than any other cannabis company currently operating in the market, and we’re confident that our NUG Run extraction process, which uses the actual flowers of the cannabis plant, will provide patients with an unprecedented option in terms of medical and adult lifestyle quality products."

The ultra-respectable BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) on Monday gave serious coverage to the wave of reports on the effectiveness of cannabis oil in fighting cancer and other serious diseases.

Chemotheraphy doesn't work for many cancer patients, and once the doctors say there's nothing more they can do, patients often turn to cannabis oil as a last resort, as a chance at life.

"Left with no options, everybody speaks about cannabis oil," said Sarah Amento, a California cancer patient. "I want to live. I have to live."

Cannabis has been used for centuries as a medicine; Britain's leading cancer research group is interested, according to spokeswoman Kat Arney. "Turning that into treatments is a long road, and certainly it's not going to be 'the one cure' for cancer, because nothing is," Arney said.

"The cannabis works," said Stefanie Larue, a cancer patient who used cannabis oil -- and only cannabis oil -- to fight her disease. "No chemo, and I only used cannabis. The tumors are gone, and the scans I have are evidence and proof of that. It's kind of like, what more do you need?"

Benton Mackenzie, the Scott County, Iowa man who was convicted on marijuana charges after he used it to treat his cancer, died early on Monday.

Mackenzie, his wife Loretta, and their son, Cody, were all convicted of "manufacturing marijuana" after 71 cannabis plants were confiscated from their home in May 2013, reports Shellie Nelson at WQAD 8.

Heartless cops initially had even charged Mackenzie's elderly parents, as well, but those charges were later dropped.

Benton admitted in his July 2014 testimony that he used cannabis oil from the plants to treat his angiosarcoma cancer. According to Mackenzie, some of the tumors diminished in size due to the treatments, with some eventually even vanishing after he used the oil.

He wasn't allowed to say in court that he had cancer, or that he used cannabis oil from his plants to treat it.

Both Mackenzie and his wife appealed their convictions after they were each given three years of probation. Their son was given a suspended sentence. A GoFundMe account was established to try to help the family move to oregon, where cannabis oil is legal, for treatment of his condition.

Patient advocate Patrick McClellan of Minnesotans for Compassionate Care on Tuesday at 10 a.m. CT, will deliver a Change.org petition with close to 9,000 signatures to Lac qui Parle County Attorney Rick Stulz, calling on him to drop child endangerment charges against Angela Brown.

Brown is scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday to face charges of child endangerment for treating her son, who suffers from a traumatic brain injury (TBI), with medical marijuana oil.

In May, Gov. Mark Dayton signed a medical marijuana bill into law that allows Minnesota residents suffering from certain conditions to access medical marijuana oil if their doctors recommend it. The law does not take effect until July 2015.

“The charges that have been brought against Angela Brown are not just serious, but outrageous,” McClellan said. “This is a mother who is being punished for treating her son with a product that is now recognized as medicine in the State of Minnesota. Ironically, helping her son has led to child endangerment charges that are hurting her son and their family.

“An overwhelming majority of Minnesotans support laws that allow access to medical marijuana. Our legislature approved one, and the governor signed it,” McClellan said. “The County Attorney Office’s actions are unnecessary, unreasonable, and out of touch with Minnesota values.”

The Florida House Judiciary Committee on Monday approved a plan to allow doctors to authorize patients to use a non-psychoactive marijuana extract which provides relief from seizures and pain.

HB 843, sponsored by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Shalimar), passed on a 15-3 vote over some determined opposition, reports Health News Florida. Florida Surgeon General John Armstrong opposed the bill, and warned the committee that it is "unwise" for the Legislature to allow untested drugs to market rather than going through the lengthy process of Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval.

"We must be wary of unintended consequences and remember that first we must do no harm," said Armstrong, who also heads the Florida Department of Health. Anecdotal reports have indicated that cannabidiol (CBD) oil is quite effective in quelling seizures, and parents like it because it doesn't get their children high, as would THC, the other major medicinal cannabinoid in marijuana.

The bill would set up four regional organizations around Florida that could grow, test and dispense CBD oil. It wouldn't have enough THC in it to get you high, but would be rich in CBD, which appears to have anti-seizure effects.

Alabama lawmakers on Wednesday took one step towards legalizing a marijuana extract that doesn't produce a high, but can be used medically.

The Senate Judiciary Committee approved by a 6-3 vote a bill known as Carly's Law which would allow people with certain illnesses to possess concentrated cannabis oil containing cannabidiol (CBD), a nonpsychoactive cannabinoid, reports The Associated Press.

The oil contains only trace amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive component of marijuana which gets you high.

Parents of children with seizure disorders including severe epileptic conditions such as Dravet syndrome are supporting the legislation. Anecdotal evidence from Colorado and elsewhere suggests that CBD oil can greatly reduce the incidence and severity of epileptic seizures.

Carly's Law, named after Carly Chandler, a child in Hoover, Alabama who could benefit from its passage, would give patients and parents a defense should they be charged with marijuana possession because of the CBD oil.

Carly's father is championing the bill in hopes that he can treat his daughter's severe seizures -- due to the rare disorder CDKL5 -- with CBD. "It's truly a medicine and it can help thousands of children and people in Alabama," Dustin Chandler said.

Moriah Barnhart's determination to help her 2-year-old daughter, Dahlia, fight a cancerous brain tumor led them to become part of a new social phenomenon: medical marijuana refugees.

Within weeks of Dahlia being diagnosed, Barnhart packed the family's bags to move from Tampa, Florida, to Memphis, Tennessee, where the toddler could undergo treatment at St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, reports Kelli Grant at CNBC. While in Memphis, Barnhart learned through her research that medical marijuana was a worthy treatment, and might mitigate the harsh effects of chemotherapy.

"It just was the safest and most viable, effective option," Barnhart said. "But it was illegal in Tennessee and Florida."

Thus the Barnharts joined the ranks of marijuana refugees who have relocated or are planning to move in order to gain safe access to medicinal cannabis. Twenty states and the District of Columbia currently allow the medical use of marijuana for certain conditions, and several other states have such laws being considered this year.

Advocates say they hear from plenty of families who move for safe access. "As soon as we have the intake form up, we're swamped with requests," said Lindsey Rinehart, cofounder of the Undergreen Railroad, organized to help patients and their families defray the expenses of moving to medical marijuana states.

Rinehart herself had to move from Idaho to Oregon last summer to treat her multiple sclerosis with cannabis.

A Republican state senator in Kentucky on Wednesday said that state lawmakers should look at whether oil extracts from marijuana can provide medicinal benefits.

Measures to legalize cannabis oil stand a much better chance of passing the Legislature than bills to legalize medical marijuana as a plant, said Sen. Julie Denton (R-Loiuisville), who chairs the Senate Health and Welfare Committee, reports Mike Wynn at The Courier-Journal.

"People need to get comfortable with something that they don't feel threatened by, that they can understand and that they can support rather than going from 0 to 60 all in one fell swoop," she said. (I would suggest to Sen. Denton that her job is to educate her constituents, rather than dumb-down legislation so as not to alarm them.)

The committee heard nearly an hour's worth of testimony from advocates who said the cannabis plant (and its oils) can treat medical conditions ranging from epilepsy to diabetes.

Sen. Denton said that cannabis oil is more likely to win support in this year's session because of its low levels of THC, the primary psychoactive component in marijuana. (She has evidently heard about CBD oil, and has incorrectly assumed that all cannabis oil is CBD oil, but of course there is also THC oil and full-extract oil which contains all the cannabinoids).

A mother in Colorado says she's doing the best she can to help her three-year-old son fight cancer, but now a doctor may turn her in to the state because she's refusing chemotherapy treatments for the child and is instead using cannabis oil.

Landon Riddle was diagnosed with leukemia, according to his mother, Sierra, reports CBS Denver. After telling Sierra that her son had only a few days to live, doctors placed him on chemotherapy and radiation treatments. Sierra said those treatments helped reduce the tumors, but made her son very sick, including night terrors.

She decided to stop the chemotherapy and give Landon cannabis oil capsules. "I am willing to do whatever I have to do to make sure my child gets to live another day and gets to have that relief and have that quality of life that he deserves," Sierra said.

Under the cannabis oil treatments, Landon now looks healthier and is feeling much better. But in a letter posted online, Sierra wrote, "They want to take away my son because I am refusing chemo!"

She had seen a doctor the day before. "They do not see cannabis as a treatment for cancer," she said.

The cannabis oil Sierra gives Landon is a concentrate made from the marijuana plant, and doesn't contain the psychoactive ingredient, THC.